How to Help End America's Gun Problem

Mass shootings must stop.

Editor's note: This story was first published on November 20, 2017, shortly after the shooting in Rancho Tehama, California, that killed four people.

Last week, America saw another mass shooting.

On November 14, a shooting took place in Rancho Tehama, California, where 44-year-old Kevin Janson Neal targeted seven different locations, including a local elementary school. During the 25-minute-long attack, Neal killed four and injured ten.

Since January, there have been over 300 mass shootings in the United States, according to the Gun Violence Archive Defined by the Archive as one where “…four people are injured or killed in a single incident, excluding the shooter,” the nation’s mass shootings achieved a particularly deadly milestone in October and November, when the Las Vegas and Sutherland Springs shootings (#273 and #308 of the year), became the first and fourth deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history.

This state-by-state approach toward gun legislation is not without problems, as states with stricter gun laws often find illegal guns flooding in from states with weaker laws, as in the case of Chicago and neighboring Indiana. But victories achieved at the state level, including the Massachusetts legislature’s recent passage of the nation’s first law banning bump stocks, are still significant given the federal government’s current inaction.

Publications like the Washington Posthave pointed out NRA campaign donations aren’t a direct factor in influencing Congress, removing NRA-backed candidates would still send a clear message on the rejection of the gun lobby, and serve as a reminder that pro-gun control supporters can match the NRA in mobilization.
With over 300 days to go until the critical November 2018 midterms, now is the time to support candidates running against NRA-endorsed incumbents, and volunteer to help flip those seats.

2. Shifting the way we approach the gun lobby.
As of 2017, there were approximately 5 million members of the NRA, one of the nation’s most powerful lobbying groups. But it’s only a small percentage of the approximately 55 million Americans who own firearms, reminding us the NRA does not speak for every gun owner.

Public recognition of these statistics would begin to shift the narrative of the NRA as impenetrable. If all pro-gun-control supporters — including the 80-90 percent of gun owners who support measures like universal background checks — committed to voting, donating, and rallying pro-gun control efforts as often as NRA members do, this would push back against the NRA’s control on gun legislation.

Even if pro-gun control supporters can’t match the nearly $54 million the NRA spent on lobbying in 2016, human outreach can still help make a difference, a point noted by Voxin a 2015 editorial. Education and organizing would help reach additional advocates, while also ensuring support and turnout, when it comes time to vote for critical gun legislation.

While federal passage of gun ownership restrictions should remain a long-term objective, it’s important to recognize the United State’s gun culture is also significantly different than other nations. With the U.S. currently ranked as the world’s most well armed country with approximately 270–310 million firearms, a single piece of legislation won’t address the crisis, according to some surveys. Other legislative areas must also be considered, including the need for accurate and consistent data.

Each have played critical roles in ending gun violence, including supporting key legislation like Washington state’s 2014 passage of universal background checks.

Support for these organizations can range anywhere from monthly donations, to joining or forming local chapters. Chapters focus on anything from supporting progressive candidates, to rapid responses for unfolding situations.

It’s important to remember that even with these recommendations, there will be setbacks. Gun violence, particularly mass-shootings, are a systemic problem that has only grown in lethality over the past three decades.
But with every step taken, ground will be gained — much like the victories seen this past Election Day, when the NRA lost 12 of their 13 endorsed races in Virginia, despite spending $2 million in outreach.

If each one of us takes one of these steps, the nation’s gun crisis will slowly begin to turn the tide.